Christian, an 11 year old boy in our Rangers program, is working to complete his gold badge which includes an interview with the pastor about the church's organization and work. Yesterday, we sat down for that interview. The bright boy had pad and pen in hand. Very seriously he inquired about what my work is, who can be a member, and how we organize our leaders. He flashed a wide smile as we talked about things that fill my daily life, about which he probably has never given a thought! As I drove away from that talk, I wondered what Christian might become in God's Church. Could God be calling him to be a pastor? Might he teach Sunday School like his Dad? What gifts will the Spirit invest in him so he can contribute to the work of God's kingdom? I prayed for his calling, that the Spirit would keep him through those turbulent years that stretch between childhood and maturity, that he would grow into a Believer that serves God in his church in his generation.
An hour after that encounter, I was sitting on the front porch of Jennie's house. She is our church's oldest living member, 100 years of age yesterday! She is confined to her home, remembering some of the past, almost nothing of the present. A charter member of this Assembly, she was present at the very beginning of it in the 1930's! She was once a key person in God's work in our church. Yellowed papers from 6 decades ago tell of her work in Sunday School, of her vote to organize the church and the decision of the congregation to join with the Assemblies of God. After talking with her, I left that time thanking God for the foundational work she did and praying that as she nears the end of life, that she will find a rich reward in Heaven for the unseen, unsung work now largely forgotten - even by her!
Believer, do you value the church?Do you realize that the Church holds a central place in God plan for your spiritual development and for the building of His kingdom on earth?
I am not talking about buildings! Those are meeting houses. The Church is people - young Christian, old Jennie, you, and middle-aged me! Ordinary people, though imperfect, are chosen by God and equipped by the Spirit, to be "the called out ones" that embody the Gospel of Christ in this world. The Christian life is not just a private, "Jesus and me" experience. Only together, with our blended gifts and shared experience, can we know the fullness of God's Presence and accomplish the work of God. That is why the Bible directs us to get together regularly with other Believers. The Word says: "Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near." (Hebrews 10:24-25, NLT)
When my youthful idealism led me to think I did not need the Church, that I could do my own thing as a Believer, my Dad was fond of reminding me that though God's church was often imperfect, though leaders sometimes failed and some people did right things for wrong reasons; the Church was like Noah's ark, carrying us through the storm, preserving our lives. He would joke - "It stunk on the inside of the ark, but it was the best thing afloat!"
Commit yourself to a church! Invest yourself in others, forming partnerships, joining the line of Believers that stretches all the way back to the Cross. The Scripture tells us that what God does through His Church amazes even the angels. "Through followers of Jesus like yourselves gathered in churches, this extraordinary plan of God is becoming known and talked about even among the angels! All this is proceeding along lines planned all along by God and then executed in Christ Jesus." (Ephesians 3:10-11, The Message)
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A parade began at Calvary,
And the saints of all the ages fill its ranks.
O'er the sands of time they're marching
To their King's great coronation.
And this could be the dawning of that day.
O this could be the dawning
Of that grand and glorious day,
When the face of Jesus we behold.
Dreams and hopes of all the ages,
Are awaiting His returning.
And this could be the dawning of that day.
This Could be the Dawning
© 1971 William J. Gaither, Inc. ARR UBP of Gaither Copyright ManagementCCLI License No. 810055
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